The Blossom and the Beast
by Baby Cougar
Summary: He always loved her, but now that Sasuke betrayed her, will she return it? Will the valiant green beast of Konoha be enough for the beautiful cherry blossom? SakuraxLee
1. Prologue

Prologue- The Blossom and the Beast

"Please be my girlfriend. I vow to protect you with my life." I smiled at her, hoping she'd say yes.

I saw her face turn slightly blue.

"Definitely…not."

I felt disheartened.

"Why?" I asked, feeling the rejection.

"Because you're a weirdo." She said to me.

"Ohhh." I whined in disappointment.

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That was the first day that I met Konoha's beautiful cherry blossom, Sakura Haruno. Since then, I have tried to win her over, but to no avail. Who am I, you ask? I am the valiant green beast of Konoha, Rock Lee.


	2. Dating Tips

Chapter 1

The Power of Youth

I was in my dojo, training with the wooden dummy. I flew through the air, feet barely touching the floor. I punched it with both fists, the circled it, cart wheeling onto my hands and kicking with both feet. I heard the satisfying crunch of the dummy breaking. I stopped to take a break.

"Nice work, Lee. I see your flames of youth are burning brightly today."

I jumped, that spun around.

"Gai-Sensei! I did not expect to see you here. How long have you been there?" I asked, I really had not noticed him there.

"Long enough. Are you still trying to impress that girl, Lee?" He asked me.

I felt my cheeks turn red.

"Sakura-san is a beautiful cherry blossom. I need to be strong in order to protect her. It pained me to see her break down when Sasuke-san left. I was planning on going to talk to her later. What should I do?"

I knew if I ever needed advice, Gai-Sensei was the one to talk to. He put his hand on his chin thoughtfully before answering me.

"I see. How youthful of you! Why don't you go clean up, and I'll give you some tips later."

I felt the fire burning in my eyes. I put my notebook away and struck a thumbs-up.

"Yosh! I will return shortly, Gai-sensei!" He smiled back at me, teeth sparkling. He gave me the thumbs-up, and I ran for home, reaching it in record time.

I ran through a shower, then wrapped a towel around my waist an looked for something to wear in my bedroom. Normally, I would be happy to wear my green body suit and orange legwarmers, but I was going to ask Sakura-san out, and, from what I have gathered, she is not fond of my preferred choice of clothing. I dug up some boxers and put them on, taking the towel and rubbing my hair dry.

Going to my closet, I groaned in exasperation. It was mostly filled with the bodysuits. NO! I must not act like that, it is unyouthful. I dug through my closet and found a pair of khaki slacks and an olive green button-down shirt. I put these clothes on and examined myself in the mirror. I looked nice, and I could feel my flames burning brightly. I went back into the bathroom and combed out my hair, blow-drying it so it gained it's usual luster. Taking my headband, I tied it around my forehead and pulled my hair out over the sides, so only the leaf symbol was visible. I was rather proud. I slipped my ninja sandals back on and returned to the dojo.

"Lee! You are the epitome of the springtime of youth! You make me proud."

I could feel the tears running down my cheeks like a waterfall.

"Alright, Lee. The first thing you should do is get her flowers. Nothing is more youthful than a bouquet of flowers for the one you love."

I nodded eagerly, jotting everything down in my notebook.

"Also, pay for her dinner and let her go first. Open doors for her and compliment her."

I wrote everything down. He continued on for a while, and then he put a hand on my shoulder.

"Go get her, tiger." said Gai-Sensei.

"Yosh! The springtime of youth is with me!"

I went outside and immediately went towards the flower shop, when I bump into none other than my sensei's eternal rival and my cherry blossom's sensei, Hatake Kakashi.

"Sorry, sensei." I bowed and went to continue, when he put a hand on my shoulder.

"Where are you going dressed like that, Lee? It's unusual for you to be in anything other than that green jumpsuit." he said to me.

I turned around and looked him in the eye, flashing a smile and a thumbs-up. "I am going to ask Sakura-san out on a date. Gai-sensei has given me many youthful tips!"

I saw a bead of sweat make its way down his face.

"Uh, Lee? Mind if I take a look? I'm sure you have them written down."

I looked in confusion. "But why? Gai-sensei gave me very good advice."

"Yes, I'm sure he did, but Sakura is my student. I know what she likes and dislikes."

I considered declining his offer, since my sensei gives amazing advice, but he _did_ know Sakura better than either Gai-sensei or myself, so I dug out my notebook and handed it to him.

"Hmm…I see. Well, Lee. Some things are alright, but I wouldn't even try half of these things if I were you. The flowers are a good idea, she likes pink lilies. You should also get her chocolates. I recall something about bonbons being her favorite."

I nodded eagerly, adding notes below Gai-sensei's advice.

"Also, try not to say "youthful" too much, she isn't very fond of that. You should also…"

I took down notes of everything that Kakashi-sensei told me. After he was done, we bid our farewells and I made my way into the Yamanaka Flower Shop. I walked up to Ino behind the counter.

"I would like half a dozen pink lilies and half a dozen white lilies, please."

She blinked at me before responding.

"Whoa, Lee? Is that you? You look…different. Who are the flowers for?" She stared to collect the best of the flowers I had asked for.

I scratched the back of my head nervously. "I am going to ask Sakura-san out on a date tonight. Do you think she will like the flowers"

"Oh yes! These are her favorite! Way to go Lee, I wish you luck."

I paid for the bouquet and made my way over to the sweet shop to buy the bonbons. Paying for them, I walked out of the store on my way to her house before something in the window of the next store caught my eye. I went inside and immediately bought it. I tucked it in my pocket, I would save it for later.

I finally reached her house and knocked on the door. A kind woman answered.

"Hello, dear. Are you looking for Sakura?"

"Yes, ma'am. Is she home?" I felt my knees getting weak as she scrutinized me.

"Yes, I will go get her, come on in."

I followed her in and sat down on the couch after she motioned for me to sit.

"Sakura! There is someone here to see you!" She called up the stairs.

I felt very nervous. Sakura-san's father was sitting in an armchair across from me, reading the Konoha Times. He looked over his paper at me.

"And who might you be, son? You look a lot like that lunatic jounin, Maito Gai."

Remembering my manners, it was all I could do not to attack the man.

"Never insult my sensei, Haruno-san. I respect him. My name is Rock Lee, and I am better known as the Green Beast of Konoha."

His green eyes bored into me, but he seemed interested in me after that.

"Your sensei, eh? I'm sorry to offend you. So, what is it like having Gai as a sensei? And a Hyuuga as a teammate to boot? That is your team, right?"

"Hai, sir. Hyuuga Neji is my teammate. We are rivals, and he is strong. I have failed to beat him once in a spar. He is a worthy adversary. And Gai-sensei is amazing. He always encourages us and help us be youthful."

I smiled at the man, giving him a thumbs up, and, using the only shinobi art I could short of taijutsu, cast a small genjutsu of a beautiful sunset. The man seemed dazzled. At least I have won her father over. The genjutsu broke quickly after it was cast, I can't hold it long anyway.

I wondered where Sakura was, when she finally came down the stairs, accompanied by her mother. She looked beautiful as always, and had a wide look of surprise on her face. She must have not expected me, off all people, to be sitting in her living room. I felt a blush come up to my cheeks.

"Lee? What are you doing here? And why are you dressed so…nice?" she asked me.

I stood up, and bowed before her, holding out the flowers and chocolate. I felt them leave my hands, and I straightened up, looking at her with a small blush on my face.

"I came to ask you out on a date, Sakura-san. I made reservations at the restaurant on Maple, and I have tickets to see a movie."

I saw Sakura stand there, her eye was twitching a bit. I did my best to ignore that.

"Aw, dear, why don't you go? This nice boy did all this for you. He seems all right."

Her mother handed her the flowers and chocolate that had been taken from my hands. Sakura sighed.

"Alright, Lee, I'll go with you. Can you come back in a couple hours so I can get ready? What time is the movie?"

"It is at eight. Dinner was before the movie, so how about I pick you up at six?"

"Alright. Oh, Lee?"

"Yes, Sakura-san?"

"What movie?"

I let out a smile. I knew that she had been talking about this movie for months, and I even wanted to see it. It is a movie about forbidden love.

"Twilight."

My keen ears heard a small sound in the back of her throat, and I saw her eyes sparkle. I bowed, and left. As I was walking down the street back to my home, I slipped my hand in my pocket and made sure my gift was still there. I opened the box and looked at the beautiful craftsman ship of it. Sakura would love it. I returned it to my pocket and continued my stroll down the street when who should I see but my youthful teammate, Ten-Ten. She came jogging up to me.

"Hey Lee! I was looking for someone to spar with. Neji is off doing some family business, and Gai-Sensei just got assigned a mission with Kakashi to go do something or another. So what about you?"

I stopped walking and looked at her. She looked at me skeptically as she took in what I was wearing. I normally would not have turned down training, but today was different.

"I am sorry, Ten-Ten-chan, but I cannot spar with you today. I have a date with Sakura-san, and I am planning on giving her this," I fished in my pocket and pulled out the gift, "afterwards. It reminded me of my precious Sakura-san. Do you think she will like it?"

Ten-Ten seemed to forget all about training. Her eyes were sparkling when I showed it to her.

"Oh, Lee, it's beautiful! She will love it! But I would like to know just how you got her to say yes."

I scratched the back of my head nervously after once again pocketing the treasure. "Actually, I asked her in front of both of her parents, who seemed to like me. I gave her lilies and bonbons, and she seemed to enjoy those, too. I hope that I will be youthful enough for her tonight."

Ten-Ten put her hand over my mouth. "Lee, don't say that. That sounded, er, _wrong_. Try to limit the word "youthful" tonight. Maybe I could give you some tips on girls so you don't totally say the wrong thing."

My eyes widened at the prospect at saying anything that would offend my beautiful cherry blossom. I fished my little notebook out of my back pocket and turned it to a new page.

"Accompany me on my walk home, you can share tips with me. I will make some tea if you would like."

I started to walk, and she followed.

"Well, since nobody will train with me, I guess I have nothing better to do, so sure. When do you have to leave?"

"At five-thirty. I plan to pick her up at six and take her to dinner, then we will go to a movie at eight."

She smiled. "You seem to have gotten a few tips already. Where are you going to eat, and what movie?"

I smiled back, "That one on Maple, Château. And the movie is that new one, Twilight."

I watched her expression carefully. Her jaw dropped.

"B-but that's a five-star restaurant! And it's French! And every girl in Konoha would kill to see that movie! Edward is so dreamy…"

I let her stay in a dazed state the rest of the way to my house. When we got there I waved my hand in front of her face.

"Ten-Ten-chan, we are here."

I unlocked the door and held it open for her. She snapped out of her daze and walked in, I followed and closed the door.

"Have a seat, I will be back shortly, I must brew the tea."

She took a seat on my couch and I went to the kitchen. I took a kettle out of the cupboard and filled it up with water, then put it on the stove. I remembered to turn it on this time. Going back out into the living room, I sat on the sofa across from her.

"So, what are these tips?"

She smiled again, and stated talking in a blur. I somehow managed to catch what she was saying, and my paper was starting to smoke from the friction of the pencil. Then the teapot whistled. I put the pad and pencil down on the coffee table and got up.

"Excuse me, I must get the tea."

She nodded, and I left. I was out of tea leaves, so I only had teabags. I put one in each cup and put a dish of sugar and a dish of cream onto the serving platter. Adding the kettle, I took the tray into the living room and placed it on the coffee table.

We took a moment to enjoy our tea, then got back to business.

"Are you sure these things will help me, Ten-Ten-chan?"

"Positive. After all, who better to ask for tips on girls than a girl herself? I'd better get going. Thanks for the tea, Lee. See you tomorrow!"

She let herself out, and I took the dishes and put them in the sink. I glanced at the clock, it was already five. I will wash them later. Well, I have enough time now. I washed them quickly, then dried and put them away. Five-fifteen. Going into my bathroom, I combed my hair, making sure it looked alright. I found a can of Axe in the cabinet, so I sprayed some of that on too. I was ready. I grabbed my wallet, and, making sure the trinket was still in my pocket, walked out the door at promptly 5:30 and made my way to Sakura's house.

When I got there, I knocked on the door. Instead of her mother, Sakura was there to greet me. I felt my cheeks turn pink when I saw her.

"Hey, Lee. I hope I didn't dress up too nice…"

I gulped. "Sakura-san, you look beautiful!"

END CHAPTER

**Finally! I got this chapter done! The next chapter will be the date. You will find out what Sakura is wearing and what exactly is in the little box in Lee's pocket. Sorry about the long wait, I decided to take a month break until the middle of December. My term ends on December 6, and I have a whole month off for winter break. Cool, huh? AS always, review please!**

**Cougar**

**Good News! I couldn'y keep myself away from you guys, so I'm unleashing my load. I'm updating everything now.  
**


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